In a new interview with Roppongi Rocks, former Soilwork drummer Dirk Verbeuren discusses his first year in Megadeth.

Says Dirk: “It’s been a lot of fun! It’s been, obviously, an unexpected change but a great experience. Like many people who are in this kind of music, I grew up listening to Megadeth, so now to be a part of Megadeth is still kind of unreal at times! Sometimes I’m on stage and I am like: ‘This is really happening!’ Hahaha!”

When asked if he tries to copy the original drumming on the classic Megadeth songs, or if he adds his own style to the songs when he performs, Dirk replies: “Well, here’s the thing: the goal for me and what the band expects from me, is to be as true to the songs as I can. It’s a song by song case. Sometimes even a section by section case where I try to figure out what I can do, maybe what I would do, maybe what I can do differently. In other parts I am sticking to the original, pure and simple. A lot of the flair comes from the way one person plays compared to the next. And I play the way I play. I can’t sound like… Even though my groove is kind of similar to Nick Menza’s in a way. I grew up listening to a lot of his stuff too, so it probably kind of influenced me in that sense. In the end, I can’t sound like him. Only he can sound like him. Same with Gar and same with all the other guys. I don’t focus too much, I don’t think too much about that, I just try to honour the songs.”

Read the full interview at Roppongi Rocks.com.

Megadeth recently announced the details for the 2017 leg of their North American Tour, which kicks off on June 23rd in Big Flats, NY. This headlining tour will take them across the US as well as Canada.

Megadeth will be on tour in support of their new album, Dystopia, featuring the 2017 Grammy Award winning tittle track, “Dystopia”. The track reached #3 on The Billboard Top 200 and #1 on the Hard Music/Top Rock charts.

Along with band visionary Dave Mustaine at the helm, Megadeth’s current lineup includes Kiko Loureiro on guitar, David Ellefson on bass and Dirk Verbeuren on drums.

Joining Megadeth on their North American Tour will be special guests Meshuggah, TesseracT and Lillake. Currently scheduled dates are listed below, with more to be announced shortly.

June
23 - Big Flats, NY - Budweiser Summerstage
24 - Montebello, QC - Amnesia Rockfest *
25 - Boston, MA - House of Blues
27 - Philadelphia, PA - Fillmore
28 - Portsmouth, VA - Portsmouth Pavilion
29 - Silver Springs, MD - The Fillmore
30 - Columbus, OH - Express Live

July
5 - Windsor, ON - Caesars **
7 - St. Charles, MO - Family Arena
8 - Oklahoma City, OK - Zoo Amphitheatre
9 - Houston, TX - Revention Music Center
11 - Pittsburgh, PA - Stage AE
13 - Oshkosh, WI - Rock USA *
14 - Chicago, IL - Chicago Open Air *
15 - Cadott, WI - Rock Fest*

* Festival Dates
** Megadeth and Meshuggah only

Megadeth will then join Scorpions, one of the most iconic and influential hard rock bands of all time, as special guests on their Crazy World tour. The tour kicks off on September 14th with a month-long run of dates including stops in New York, Dallas, Toronto, Denver, Seattle, Los Angeles, amongst others, with more dates coming.

September
14 - Reading, PA - Santander Arena
16 - New York, NY - Madison Square Garden
22 - Toronto, ON - Budweiser Stage
25 - Denver, CO - 1st Bank Center
26 - Salt Lake City, UT - Venue TBA
29 - Spokane, WA - Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena
30 - Seattle, WA - Tacoma Dome

October
3 - Reno, NV - Grand Sierra Resort
4 - Oakland, CA - Oracle Arena
7 - Los Angeles, CA - The Forum
8 - Phoenix, AZ - Talking Stick Arena
11 - San Antonio, TX - Freeman Coliseum
12 - Dallas, TX - Pavilion at the Music Factory
14 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL - BB&T Center
15 - Tampa, FL - Amalie Arena